karen32203

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.3 Below Average

Food  4      Ambience  6      Service  4      Value  3     

I ordered the fish and chips from the kid's menu for my 4 year old. The fish was nice but they obviously did not clean the fish properly because there was still a bone in it. The bone got stuck in my 4 year old's throat and I had to take him to the doctor's immediately. My poor child was crying and was terrified as his throat was hurting quite badly.

What made me even more upset was that the senior staff, tried to tell us that there was nothing wrong with my child. He said that if there was really a bone stuck in his throat he would be choking and turning red. I'm sorry to say but the senior staff has obviously never had a bone stuck in his throat before.

My husband's and my own meal was barely eaten as we had to leave straight away for the doctor's. But what I managed to taste was good (I ordered the pork ribs). We were not allowed to take our uneaten meals home and I felt it wasn't right that they asked me to pay for it when I had barely touched it. After some discussions with another house manager, Cheryl she agreed not to charge us.

My 4 year old's favorite food is fish. He has eaten fish all his life and in many restaurants (we dine out a lot) and this is the first time that there is a bone in a fish fillet. Actually this is the second time from Castle Hill RSL. The first time was downstairs in the bistro but luckily the bone in the fish from the bistro was big enough for him to realise it and he pulled it out of his mouth.

Back to the Rib Factory, they told us they cannot guarantee the meal is bone free. I do not believe that is a good enough reason. If they want to offer fish in the kid's menu they seriously need to be more careful and pretty much be 100% sure there is no bones in the fish before serving it to a child. Luckily after numerous attempt at getting him to swallow some bread at home we managed to dislodge the bone. My child is now too scared to eat fish after this experience.

So Beware! If you order the fish and chips off the kids menu from either the Rib Factory or the bistro downstairs (I believe they have the same fish supplier) make sure there's no bones in the fish before giving it to your child. The RSL serves flathead and I think that's where the problem lies. Flathead has many tiny bones and need to be cleaned very carefully which the restaurant is not doing.

Apr 17, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.5 Average

Food  6      Ambience  4      Service  9      Value  3     

I was rather disappointed with this place. We had seafood basket $17.50, beer battered flathead $16.90 with chips and a child's meal of fish and chips $8. Before I ordered the child's fish and chips I asked the waitress what fish they used. I was told flathead. When the meal came out there were 2 pieces (chicken nugget shaped and size) of fish and a small handful of chips. There was no way the fish was flathead and the size of the meal wasn't even enough for a 3 year old and my 3 year old is a small eater!

The seafood basket consisted of all premade frozen products except for the fish. Overall the food was very average and pricey for the portions you get. However, we had very friendly service from the waitstaff. I don't think I'll be back.

Sep 11, 2010

6.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  7      Value  7     

Got a couple of takeaway pizzas from here. Had the Supreme and Peri Portugese pizzas. I do not agree with the previous review. The Peri Portugese wasn't oily and it was my favourite of the two. The base was quite nice but on the whole I rate both pizzas average. There was nothing spectacular about it. I used the Entertainment Book so the price was quite reasonable with the 25% off discount.

The staff were very friendly but the restaurant felt a little warm when I was there at the front counter. I think it would have been uncomfortable if we had eaten in there instead of doing the takeaway.

Dec 05, 2009

7.3 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  7     

I will only rate what me and my partner had. And we both had the Aussie burger, one with beer battered hand cut chips and the other with creamy mashed potatoes. We both enjoyed our meal very much, the burger was cooked perfectly and no complains with the fries and mashed either. We ordered a side of mushroom sauce and although it was hearty with lots of mushrooms it was too salty.

For dessert we had the pyramid ice cream and it was nice except for the crushed peanuts on the plate which I felt did not compliment the flavours of the ice cream.
At the time we were there I think the air conditioning was either not working or could not keep up with the 40 degree heat. The girl who served us was very nice and friendly.

We met a friend at another table and he had to send back his meal of assorted Aussie meats (kangaroo, Emu, Knagaroo, Alpaca etc). He said it was so bad he could not take another bite.

Nov 22, 2009

6 Average

Food  6      Drinks  6      Ambience  6      Service  7      Value  5     

I didn't expect fine dining from a pub. And what we got was pub food. A couple of gripes. The price is a little high for the size of the meals. Chicken schnitzel came with a good piece of chicken breast, chips and salad. The salad was tiny with no dressing and they could have given a bit more chips. However, the chips were freshly cooked. The steaks looked burnt and was very small for the price. Good place for family lunch though as there is a nice playground outside the courtyard for the kids.

May 30, 2009

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.3 Below Average

Food  4      Ambience  6      Service  4      Value  3     

I ordered the fish and chips from the kid's menu for my 4 year old. The fish was nice but they obviously did not clean the fish properly because there was still a bone in it. The bone got stuck in my 4 year old's throat and I had to take him to the doctor's immediately. My poor child was crying and was terrified as his throat was hurting quite badly.

What made me even more upset was that the senior staff, tried to tell us that there was nothing wrong with my child. He said that if there was really a bone stuck in his throat he would be choking and turning red. I'm sorry to say but the senior staff has obviously never had a bone stuck in his throat before.

My husband's and my own meal was barely eaten as we had to leave straight away for the doctor's. But what I managed to taste was good (I ordered the pork ribs). We were not allowed to take our uneaten meals home and I felt it wasn't right that they asked me to pay for it when I had barely touched it. After some discussions with another house manager, Cheryl she agreed not to charge us.

My 4 year old's favorite food is fish. He has eaten fish all his life and in many restaurants (we dine out a lot) and this is the first time that there is a bone in a fish fillet. Actually this is the second time from Castle Hill RSL. The first time was downstairs in the bistro but luckily the bone in the fish from the bistro was big enough for him to realise it and he pulled it out of his mouth.

Back to the Rib Factory, they told us they cannot guarantee the meal is bone free. I do not believe that is a good enough reason. If they want to offer fish in the kid's menu they seriously need to be more careful and pretty much be 100% sure there is no bones in the fish before serving it to a child. Luckily after numerous attempt at getting him to swallow some bread at home we managed to dislodge the bone. My child is now too scared to eat fish after this experience.

So Beware! If you order the fish and chips off the kids menu from either the Rib Factory or the bistro downstairs (I believe they have the same fish supplier) make sure there's no bones in the fish before giving it to your child. The RSL serves flathead and I think that's where the problem lies. Flathead has many tiny bones and need to be cleaned very carefully which the restaurant is not doing.

Apr 17, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.5 Average

Food  6      Ambience  4      Service  9      Value  3     

I was rather disappointed with this place. We had seafood basket $17.50, beer battered flathead $16.90 with chips and a child's meal of fish and chips $8. Before I ordered the child's fish and chips I asked the waitress what fish they used. I was told flathead. When the meal came out there were 2 pieces (chicken nugget shaped and size) of fish and a small handful of chips. There was no way the fish was flathead and the size of the meal wasn't even enough for a 3 year old and my 3 year old is a small eater!

The seafood basket consisted of all premade frozen products except for the fish. Overall the food was very average and pricey for the portions you get. However, we had very friendly service from the waitstaff. I don't think I'll be back.

Sep 11, 2010

6.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  7      Value  7     

Got a couple of takeaway pizzas from here. Had the Supreme and Peri Portugese pizzas. I do not agree with the previous review. The Peri Portugese wasn't oily and it was my favourite of the two. The base was quite nice but on the whole I rate both pizzas average. There was nothing spectacular about it. I used the Entertainment Book so the price was quite reasonable with the 25% off discount.

The staff were very friendly but the restaurant felt a little warm when I was there at the front counter. I think it would have been uncomfortable if we had eaten in there instead of doing the takeaway.

Dec 05, 2009

7.3 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  7     

I will only rate what me and my partner had. And we both had the Aussie burger, one with beer battered hand cut chips and the other with creamy mashed potatoes. We both enjoyed our meal very much, the burger was cooked perfectly and no complains with the fries and mashed either. We ordered a side of mushroom sauce and although it was hearty with lots of mushrooms it was too salty.

For dessert we had the pyramid ice cream and it was nice except for the crushed peanuts on the plate which I felt did not compliment the flavours of the ice cream.
At the time we were there I think the air conditioning was either not working or could not keep up with the 40 degree heat. The girl who served us was very nice and friendly.

We met a friend at another table and he had to send back his meal of assorted Aussie meats (kangaroo, Emu, Knagaroo, Alpaca etc). He said it was so bad he could not take another bite.

Nov 22, 2009

6 Average

Food  6      Drinks  6      Ambience  6      Service  7      Value  5     

I didn't expect fine dining from a pub. And what we got was pub food. A couple of gripes. The price is a little high for the size of the meals. Chicken schnitzel came with a good piece of chicken breast, chips and salad. The salad was tiny with no dressing and they could have given a bit more chips. However, the chips were freshly cooked. The steaks looked burnt and was very small for the price. Good place for family lunch though as there is a nice playground outside the courtyard for the kids.

May 30, 2009

7.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  8     

Great little cafe on the main road of the entrance. We had pasta cabonara and marinara. Both were good and tasty. Portions were just right for dinner. Garlic bread (3 pieces) for $5.90 was a little pricey. Chairs were small and uncomfortable so we didn't linger long. Will definitely be back the next time we're around the area.

May 18, 2009

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  6     

In the last 10 years, whenever we are on holidays in the the Blue Mountains we would come to this restaurant. The food is good and fresh but prices have gone up and the portions have been reduced. I was here again just yesterday for lunch and we had Crispy Chicken with lemon sauce, Soft shell crab and combination tofu hot pot. I would rate the soft shell crab 8.5/10, chicken 7.5/10 and the combination tofu 6.5/10. The tofu dish was nothing special.

I agree with the previous review about the rice. Boiled rice should come in a pot and they should be charging rice per person, however, this restaurant charges $2 per bowl with no free refills. That is a bit steep. Imagine if you have a table of 10 people, with 10 bowls of rice, they would have made $20 just on boiled rice alone. You can buy a 10 kg bag of uncooked rice from Woolies/Coles for $20!

May 02, 2009

6.3 Average

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  5      Value  4     

Had lunch on a Saturday with 4 other people. The restaurant was quite empty. The ribs were delicious and a few of us also had the rump steak. Apparently that was good too. $29.95 for half a rack of ribs and chips was quite pricey. They could have included some salad on the side for that price. Dessert was displayed on a huge tray and you get to pick what you want.

I had the round chocolate tart and it was very heavy (too heavy). Although the desserts looked good all of us thought the taste was just average, nothing spectacular. The hot chocolate was pretty bad. It was watery and bland. Service was good except for the attitude of the waitress that served us. She had an attitude that none of us quite liked. It was minor but just the way she answered our questions put us off.

May 02, 2009

7.5 Recommended

Food  6      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  8     

The waiters/waitresses were very friendly. A group of us (7 adults and a toddler) had lunch here today. The tables were well spaced so it's very pram friendly. We were there early so there were hardly anyone at the restaurant. The meals came out quickly. Pizzas, fish and chips and chicken parmigiana were good.

I found the Big Breakfast average but the others who had the same meal didn't have a problem with it. My scrambled eggs were a little dry, toast and sausages were cold. This place is child friendly and they have a special where kids eat free between 5pm - 8pm. We used the Entertainment Book discount and with it, it was good value.

Apr 19, 2009

7.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  8     

Good pizzas and pastas. Child friendly and lots of space in the courtyard for the little ones to run around. It's a little crowded inside as they try to cramp too many tables into a small place. Service is friendly and parking is hassle free.

Apr 06, 2009